Home & Garden briefs for May 10

May 10, 2013

Heritage Day in Martinsburg on May 11 will allow the Berkeley Jefferson Extension Master Gardeners to showcase their container gardens in the sunroom at the Boydville Mansion on Queen Street. The Berkeley/Jefferson County Extension Master Gardeners will have a display and container gardens on display, and several container gardens will be for sale Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the sunroom of the Historic Boydville Mansion at 601 South Queen Street. Come early if you want to buy a container garden, supplies are limited.

Household, Farm Pesticide Event

The Berkeley County Solid Waste Authority (BCSWA) and the West Virginia Department of Agriculture is pleased to announce the first large scale collection event for used or unwanted liquid and powder pesticides. This program is for Berkeley County residents ONLY. The collection event will be conducted at the Grapevine Road Recycling Center Saturday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.

The term "Pesticide" includes a wide range of products used by the home owner or farmer for pest control and garden applications.

Acceptable:

INSECTICIDES: products, such as insect repellants, used for eliminating common household pest such as ants, roaches or other insects. Insecticides are also used to control insects in landscaping lawns and gardens. Mixtures of insecticides containing fertilizers will also be accepted.

HERBICIDES: products used to kill unwanted plants. The most common products are used for the control of weeds in lawns and gardens. These are also commonly mixed with fertilizers and are labeled "weed and feed."

RODENTICIDES: these products are usually sold in the form of baits resembling rabbit food or bird seed. Rodenticide may also be pressed into blocks resembling compressed pet food and green or blue in color. Products intended to eliminate moles or gophers are also acceptable and may be peanuts, seeds or pellets that are placed in the burrows of the pest animal.

FUNGICIDES: these products are primarily designed to control diseases in plants.

AEROSOL CANS: such as wasp and hornet products, roach, ant, control or insect repellants will be accepted.

Not Acceptable:

No oil-based paints, latex paints, stains, solvents, gasoline, kerosene, ammunition or propane cylinders will be accepted. No pressurized cylinders will be accepted. No metal cylinders with a threaded fitting designed to take a valve will be accepted. No container will be accepted without its original factory labeling.

If a participant has large volumes not practical for standard transportation, please contact Doug Hudson at the West Virginia Department of Agriculture at 304-558-2209 for other arrangements.

2013 JC Expo

set for Saturday

The 33st annual Jefferson County Expo will be held Saturday. All animals must be in place by 9 a.m. The sheep show, dairy show and Rabbit 101 Workshop will start at 9 a.m. with rabbit judging, the horse show and dairy and meat goat shows at 10 a.m. followed by the beef show at 1 p.m.

Market Sheep and Market Goat check-in will be held today from 6 to 8 p.m.

REMEMBER: Livestock preregistration forms are due today. Completed forms are to be postmarked by today. Completed forms can be dropped off today between 6 and 8 p.m. at the fairgrounds. No exceptions will be allowed. Forms can be downloaded from the Berkeley County Youth Fair website at www.berkeleycountyyouthfair.org/id5.html.

Farmers market vendors wanted

Main Street Martinsburg is signing up vendors now for the 2013 Main Street Martinsburg's Farmers Market. Main Street Martinsburg has hosted a Farmers Market for many years and is actively looking to expand the market. The Downtown Market will be held every Friday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Town Square starting June 7. Main Street is looking for vendors who want to sell vegetables, fruit, herbs, flowers and baked goods.

Pasture-based performance test

The nomination period for the 2013 Western Maryland Pasture-Based Meat Goat Performance Test is April 1 thru May 15. The test is open to male goats of any breed or breed cross, with or without registration papers or registration eligibility.

Consigners may nominate up to five goats to the test. The nomination fee is $20 per goat. A minimum of two is recommended. Half-sibs (same sire) are recommended. This year, the total cost of testing a goat will be $100. This fee will be used to pay for daily care, pasture maintenance and renovation, fencing repairs, minerals, veterinary costs, fecal testing, larvae ID, ultrasound scanning and sale advertisement. The balance of payment ($80/goat) is due when the goats are delivered to the test location June 1.

Eligible goats must have been born between December 20, 2012, and March 20, 2013. They must weigh between 35 and 70 lbs. upon delivery to the test site June 1. They must have been weaned for at least two weeks and have received two inoculations for overeating disease (type C & D) and tetanus. Their hooves must be trimmed (if necessary) prior to arrival at the test site.

Each consignment of goats must be accompanied by appropriate health papers: intrastate health papers for in-state goats and interstate health papers for out-of-state consignments. Consigners must also fill out a self-certification form, attesting to the health of their animals. All goats must have official USDA scrapie identification.

With the exception of the health papers, all of the documents pertinent to the goat test may be downloaded from mdgoattest.blogspot.com. Nomination packets are available upon request. Contact Susan Schoenian at 301-432-2767, ext. 343, or sschoen@umd.edu to request a packet.

During the test, the goats will be handled every two weeks to record data and collect fecal samples. Towards the end of the test, they will be scanned to determine carcass characteristics. They will also be evaluated for structural correctness and reproductive performance.

Goats meeting Gold, Silver and Bronze standards of performance will be eligible to sell. A sale is tentatively scheduled for Sept. 21 in Chatham, Va. Goats which qualify for the sale must be sold at the sale. Goats not qualifying for the sale may be sold via private treaty. Goats not sold for breeding or to a commercial buyer must be picked up from the test site Sept. 14. Special permission will be required to pick up goats after (or before) Sept. 14.

- Mary Beth Bennett, Ph.D. is a WVU Extension agent and associate professor. She can be reached at 264-1936, MBBennett@mail.wvu.edu, on the web at www.berkeleyextension.com, or by mail at Mary Beth Bennett, 400 W. Stephen St., Suite 302, Martinsburg, WV 25401.